1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a bumper structure for motor vehicles.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Bumpers are provided in the front and rear of the body of a motor vehicle for such purposes as protection of the vehicle against damage due to collision with an object or due to collision between vehicles, finishing of external appearance of an armor design, or protection of pedestrians.
In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 there is shown the conventional installing structure of the bumper in the front and rear of the vehicle body. First, a bumper fascia 1 is molded with cross section of approximate shape of a letter U. A metallic reinforcement 2 is fixed to both ends of the form having the U-shaped cross section, by bolts 3,3 and nuts 4,4, clips, or the like. The reinforcement 2 which has a rectangular bar form is fixed along the bumper fascia 1. An appropriate number of stays 5 are welded to the reinforcement 2, and a construction is given in which the bumper is attached via the stays 5 to the strength members of the frame or body. In FIG. 2, radiator grills 6 are shown by phantom line. Further, the bumper has therein an energy absorbing member 7 made of urethane foam or polystyrene foam (see, for instance, Japanese Laid-Open Utility Model No. 59-62061).
However, shown prior-art bumper structure in the above, there are the following problems when the form or the like of the bumper fascia is changed.
Even for vehicles of the same type and same model, the form of the bumper fascia is varied depending upon the grade or destination. Because of this, the shape of the reinforcement 2 for installing the bumper fascia 1 on the vehicle body has to be changed every time the shape of the bumper fascia 1 is changed. This leads to an increase in the number of facilities, such as the molding machine, which results in an accompanying increase in the manufacturing cost.